Inventing the Shopping Mall - The Gruen Effect

Der Erfinder der Shopping Mall - Der Gruen Effect

Victor Gruen couldn't possibly have known how much he would change the world. The world famous Viennese architect is chiefly remembered as the inventor of the shopping mall. His «green»ideas spawned cities, which ultimately became shrines to the Gods of consumption and the free market. This documentary follows Gruen's dramatic escape from Nazi controlled Vienna in 1938, his subsequent adventures in booming post-war America and finally his return to Vienna in the 1960s as a committed socialist. The life, work and critical humour of this exceptional architect serve as a starting point for an examination of the cities in which we live today. A portrait of a man who, in keeping with the motto «cars buy nothing», has had a lasting influence on economics, politics and, above all, consumers.